NOVPUBChapter 192: Chapter 191: The Hidden Arrow
Chapter 192 -191: The Hidden Arrow
…
As dawn’s light dimly illuminated the sky, it was the first time people truly appreciated the sun’s breathtaking beauty.
The morning rays slowly swept across the harbor city, driving back the shadows of the night until they vanished completely. Bathed in this reassuring radiance, many even began to weep uncontrollably.
Despite the fact that those monster-like cultists remained unaffected during the day, and stumbling upon them meant certain death, humans are such creatures that prefer a clear demise over dying in the night consumed with nameless terror.
Light bestowed upon civilization the strength to struggle.
As Leisk passed by Fafu Street, he felt a sense of fulfillment he had never experienced before. For the first time, people stopped treating ordinary citizens as expendable entities, and some stood up voluntarily to offer refuge to the poor, fleeing people. The sight in front of Yeni Temple left him with an impression that rushed to his mind as being nothing short of magnificent.
Indeed, magnificent.
It wasn’t the magnificence of seas of clouds over towering mountains, nor was it the wonder of sanctuaries constructed by tens of thousands over a lifetime.
It was simply tens of thousands of citizens gathered together, their moving heads like a colorful tidal wave.
They included vagrants and the impoverished from the South City Area, ordinary citizens from the East District, and even a small cluster of well-dressed rich people, likely escapees from the Inner City District. But now, they were all the same type of people sheltered by Paradise. Crammed into rudimentary tents, they discussed the latest attack news and lamented their unfortunate fates – something they would never have done in the past; they wouldn’t have even met.
Incredibly, Leisk discovered that the cultists’ uprising, though a great disaster, with the combined efforts of Yeni Temple and the Gate of Destiny, had melted away the city’s orderly segregation. Perhaps after the attacks ceased, these people would return to their previous frameworks, never to interact again, but who knew if Paradise might bring new changes?
As he felt fulfilled, the horn in his heart grew heavier.
If it weren’t absolutely necessary, he really didn’t want the Hidden Mist to bury all of this.
After leaving Fafu Street and walking another four hundred or so meters, Leisk crossed a paved road and arrived at Quarter Fort, two blocks away, a gathering place for free citizens. Many single-story houses closely packed together formed an outward-spreading ring, hence the name “fort.” His home was among them.
The scene here contrasted starkly with that of Yeni Temple; the streets were so quiet that not a soul was in sight, and every household had its doors and windows tightly shut, fearing the intrusion of refugees. Leisk was not surprised by this; in fact, the current state of Quarter Fort was a normality in the city.
He took out his keys and unlocked the door of his rented cottage. No sooner had he crossed the threshold than a familiar squawk reached his ears.
“Hide, hide!”
“Forget, forget!”
“I know, you don’t have to remind me every day,” Leisk said, approaching the window-sill, pinching a sunflower seed, cracking it open, and bringing it to its beak.
“Bribe, bribe!”
The bird was a plump parrot, and Leisk remembered how agile and sensitive it used to be, nowhere near as sluggish as it was now. He wondered if the bird had stayed in the city too long and picked up the bad habits of the nobility.
Each believer chosen by the Mist God received the aid of a bird, for birds could travel through the mist unimpeded by the fog walls, making them both messengers of the divinities and helpers to the faithful. This parrot, which he named Huihui, for instance, had delivered to him the Fog Horn.
But as for helpers… He had only read about this in the scriptures; truthfully, he did not understand how a parrot could be of any assistance to him.
And Huihui apparently disliked foraging for food on its own.
If he didn’t feed it every other day, it would even defecate on his head.
Leisk peeled a few more sunflower seeds and placed them at the window, then began to pack up his belongings.
“Deserter! Deserter!” Huihui shrieked.
“I haven’t forgotten my responsibility!” he glared at the parrot, “I just don’t want to hide and observe anymore. This city is different from other places, it shouldn’t be hastily swallowed by the mist. I’m moving to the temple to live with Mr. Zhao and the others, and I will join them in the upcoming battles!”
Indeed, the decisive battle of the war was approaching—whether it was Priestess Ge Wei or the Divine Envoy of Paradise, Mr. Zhao, they all agreed that the enemy’s objective at the high sky mine was not to escape, and all answers might be revealed there.
For this reason, the remaining seven hundred thirty-five city guards were fully armed and ready to go. Shandela planned to requisition a mining train, load it with cannons, and cover the troops as they surrounded the mining area. Moreover, they had no concerns about fighting in the wilderness—if the cultists dared resist, they would be bombarded with explosives.
Ge Wei unhesitatingly took the vanguard position; she believed the red light circle encountered on the ship originated from some artifact of the Evil God, not the Divine Envoy’s own power, and that a method to break it could be found in battle.
To achieve their own goals, both parties would exert all their strength.
This time, he didn’t want to be just an observer.
“Warning, warning!”
“I’ve already made up my mind, no matter how much you prattle it’s useless.” Leisk picked up the birdcage, patting the dust off of it, “Come on in.”
“Enemy, enemy!”
The parrot’s feathers stood on end. It flapped its wings, seemingly trying to take flight, but was unable to do so after a few attempts.
At this moment, Leisk also realized something was wrong. He turned around and suddenly saw the door being slammed open, a masked man entering. The five or six meters distance seemed only a step away to him; in the blink of an eye, he had closed in on Leisk, who turned to flee but was caught by the shoulder and forcefully spun around!
Then the man’s other hand, like a sharp sword, violently pierced into Leisk’s chest!
With his lung punctured, blood crazily gushed into the trachea; the boy opened his mouth to shout, but what emerged was a gush of fresh blood.
The man’s mouth curved into a smile, seemingly quite satisfied with Leisk’s death throes. That hand continued to churn inside him, shattered organs being squeezed out along with the blood.
However, the pride lasted less than half a minute. After having hollowed out Leisk’s chest, the man’s expression changed.
He pulled out his blood-red hand and grabbed Leisk’s collar, pulling him close, “Where’s the Horn! Where have you hidden the Fog Horn!”
The smile vanished from his lips, replaced by anger and urgency.
Leisk was barely breathing at this point; his lips, full of blood foam, parted as if he wanted to say something.
The man had to pull him closer, listening intently.
“It’s right above… your head… my lord Earl…”
His face drastically changed, releasing Leisk as if retreating backward!
But Ailuodi was one step faster!
There was a muted thud as the whirlwind carrying shattered bricks and beams streaked down, and the gleaming stream of light engulfed half of his body!
The man cried out in pain as he fell to the ground, one arm gone, a deep sword gash extending from his shoulder to his chest diaphragm. Through the fresh red flesh, one could even see his heart throbbing.
